The “Meri Panchayat” mobile application, developed through a collaboration between the Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) and the National Informatics Centre (NIC), has earned international acclaim by winning the WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Award. The award was conferred under the Action Line Category for Cultural Diversity and Identity, Linguistic Diversity, and Local Content at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)+20 High-Level Event 2025 held in Geneva, Switzerland.

Organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), this global platform marked 20 years of WSIS and provided an opportunity to evaluate progress and accelerate action in building inclusive information societies. Co-hosted by the Swiss Confederation and co-organized by ITU, UNESCO, UNDP, and UNCTAD, the event brought together digital leaders from across the world. The WSIS Champion Certificate was formally handed over to the Hon’ble Union Minister of Panchayati Raj, Shri Rajiv Ranjan Singh, in New Delhi. The ceremony was also attended by the Hon’ble Minister of State, Prof. S. P. Singh Baghel, Secretary MoPR, Shri Vivek Bharadwaj, and senior officials from NIC and MoPR. Sunita Jain, Senior Technical Director, NIC/MoPR, accepted the award on behalf of India in Geneva on July 10.

In his address, Shri Rajiv Ranjan Singh lauded the Meri Panchayat initiative as a milestone in India’s journey toward citizen-centric, transparent, and participatory digital governance. He emphasized the app’s role in bridging the digital divide in rural India and creating new opportunities for grassroots empowerment.

With over 2.65 lakh Gram Panchayats, 25 lakh elected representatives, and a rural population of nearly 950 million, Meri Panchayat serves as a unifying digital platform that empowers local self-governance across the country. The app provides real-time access to:

1- Panchayat budgets, receipts, and payments.

2- Development plans and project tracking.

3- Elected representatives’ details and public infrastructure.

4- Civic services and social audit tools.

5- Fund utilization reports and grievance redressal mechanisms.

6- Weather forecasts at the Gram Panchayat level.

The application integrates geo-tagged and geo-fenced features to improve monitoring and accountability. Most notably, the app supports over 12 Indian languages, promoting linguistic inclusivity and strengthening cultural identity at the local level.

True to its name, Meri Panchayat allows citizens to engage directly with the planning and monitoring of development activities. They can:

1- Propose new projects.

2- Review and rate completed works.

3-Access Gram Sabha agendas and final decisions.

This interactive model not only builds trust but also deepens democratic participation in rural governance. The app stands as a model for replicable, scalable, and citizen-focused digital governance tools in developing countries.